Diablo 4 continues the legacy of its predecessors by offering a deep, loot-driven experience. Among the many resources that players can collect throughout the game, Forgotten Souls stand out as a crucial D4 Gold for enhancing and upgrading gear. These rare crafting materials are essential for creating and improving high-level Legendary and Unique items, making them a key aspect of any serious Diablo 4 player’s progression.
In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about Forgotten Souls—including how to farm them efficiently, what they are used for, and some tips and strategies for maximizing your rewards.
What Are Forgotten Souls in Diablo 4?
Forgotten Souls are a type of crafting material in Diablo 4, primarily used to upgrade or re-roll Legendary and Unique gear. These souls can be used at The Occultist (a crafting station) to perform key activities like upgrading, extracting, and re-rolling Legendary affixes, or even to enhance the power of certain high-level items. Forgotten Souls are often considered a “late-game” resource due to their relevance in endgame gear crafting, particularly when you’re trying to fine-tune your build and improve your combat effectiveness in the toughest challenges.
Why Are Forgotten Souls Important?
Re-Roll Legendary Stats: Forgotten Souls are required to re-roll the affixes (attributes) of Legendary items. This allows players to fine-tune their gear to suit their desired playstyle or optimize specific attributes.
Upgrade Legendary Items: These souls are necessary for upgrading the tier of Legendary items, potentially turning an item into a Unique or improving its power, rarity, or affix pool.
Crafting High-Level Gear: As you progress through Diablo 4, the higher-tier Legendary and Unique items require Forgotten Souls to craft or modify. This means that if you’re looking to complete endgame builds or take on the hardest content (like Nightmare Dungeons, World Bosses, or PvP), you will need Forgotten Souls in your inventory.
Endgame Progression: Forgotten Souls become a critical resource once you’ve moved past the early and mid-game content. They are essential for maximizing gear quality, crafting powerful endgame gear, and optimizing your build for the toughest challenges.
How to Farm Forgotten Souls in Diablo 4
Farming Forgotten Souls is not as straightforward as farming standard loot or resources. These souls are a rare material that can be obtained through several different methods. The key to collecting Forgotten Souls efficiently lies in understanding the best sources and optimizing your activities for the highest yield.
1. Salvaging Legendary and Unique Items
The primary method for obtaining Forgotten Souls is salvaging Legendary and Unique items. You can obtain these items by:
Killing Elite enemies: Elite monsters, including Champions, Rares, and Bosses, drop Legendary items at a higher rate than standard enemies. These enemies are scattered throughout the world and are often found in Public Events, Strongholds, and Dungeons.
Completing Dungeons and Activities: As you progress through various dungeons or world events, you will find a steady supply of Legendary items, many of which can be salvaged for Forgotten Souls.
To salvage these items, visit the Occultist in any major hub (such as Kyovashad in the Fractured Peaks). Salvaging a Legendary or Unique item will give you a return of Forgotten Souls, with the number depending on the rarity and quality of the item.
Salvage Mechanism: When you salvage an item, you will receive not only Forgotten Souls but also other crafting materials (like Veiled Crystals, Crushed Gems, and Crafting Materials), making it essential for high-level crafting. The higher the item level and rarity, the more Forgotten Souls you’ll receive in return.
Pro Tip: Focus on salvaging unwanted Legendary gear that you’ve obtained but don’t need. As you level up and get better gear, you’ll accumulate plenty of Legendary items that you can break down for resources. Save these for when you need Forgotten Souls for specific upgrades.
2. Complete Nightmare Dungeons
Nightmare Dungeons are a key late-game feature in Diablo 4 and are an excellent source of Forgotten Souls. These dungeons are significantly more difficult than standard ones and often require you to reach a specific Nightmare Sigil level. The rewards at the end of these dungeons are substantial, including high-tier Legendary and Unique gear, which can be salvaged for Forgotten Souls.
Nightmare Dungeons offer a higher rate of Legendary drops compared to regular dungeons, and clearing these dungeons efficiently allows you to farm both high-level loot and Forgotten Souls.
Nightmare Sigils also affect the level and power of the enemies within the dungeons, so as you progress and increase the difficulty of these dungeons, the rewards (including Forgotten Souls) become more generous.
3. Participate in World Events and Boss Fights
World Events and major boss fights in Diablo 4 are often rich with loot, including Legendary items that can be salvaged into Forgotten Souls. World Bosses, in particular, drop a large quantity of high-level loot, which can often include powerful Legendary gear.
Public Events and World Bosses: These are large, server-wide events where players work together to defeat powerful enemies. The loot you receive from participating in these events is generally high-quality, making them a prime source for obtaining items that can be salvaged for Forgotten Souls.
Group Play: These events often occur in high-traffic areas, meaning you’ll have the opportunity to collaborate with other players. The loot from World Bosses and other events is shared, so you may want to target these events when they appear on your map to maximize your chances of getting Legendary items to salvage.
4. Upgrade Your Item Salvage Rate (Crafting Enhancements)
Once you’ve gathered enough Forgotten Souls, you can also enhance your crafting capabilities by upgrading your crafting station. For example, upgrading your Occultist’s abilities can provide an increased rate of return when salvaging Legendary items, improving your farming efficiency.
In addition, using Crafting Materials like Veiled Crystals and Crushed Gems can improve your overall chances of getting high-quality Legendary items, thus boosting your chances of earning Forgotten Souls.
Pro Tip: Focus on upgrading your Crafting Stations as you approach the mid-game to late-game transition. This will ensure that you can craft higher-tier gear and get more value from salvaging Legendary items.
5. Trading and Marketplace (Future Updates)
As of the current state of Diablo 4, trading is limited, but Blizzard has hinted at future updates that may allow for a more robust player-driven marketplace. If and when this feature is implemented, players will be able to trade items directly with others. This could open up new avenues for acquiring high-level Legendary items, which can then be salvaged for Forgotten Souls.
How to Use Forgotten Souls
Once you’ve gathered a decent amount of Forgotten Souls, it’s time to put them to use. These souls are crucial for upgrading and re-rolling high-tier gear, especially as you approach the endgame. Here’s how to make the best use of this valuable resource:
1. Upgrade Legendary and Unique Gear
At the Occultist, Forgotten Souls are used to upgrade Legendary items into higher-tier versions. This can involve improving the level, rarity, or affixes of the gear. This process is critical for keeping up with the increasing difficulty of Diablo 4’s content as you progress.
Upgrading Affixes: If you’ve found a Legendary item with stats that don’t suit your current build, you can use Forgotten Souls to re-roll or upgrade those affixes until you get a combination that matches your needs.
2. Re-Roll Legendary Affixes
You can use Forgotten Souls to re-roll the affixes of Legendary gear. This is essential if you want to fine-tune your gear for the best combination of damage, defense, and utility for your specific character build.
Re-roll Mechanics: Re-rolling involves replacing one of the affixes on an item. It can take several attempts to get the perfect combination, so having a steady supply of Forgotten Souls is essential for optimizing your gear.
3. Craft Unique Items
Later in the game, crafting Unique Items will become a vital part of your progression. Forgotten Souls are necessary for this, and as you improve your crafting skills, you can use these resources to make some of the most powerful items in the game.
4. Enhance Gear for Endgame Content
When you’re preparing for endgame content, such as Nightmare Dungeons, Raids, or World Bosses, having fully upgraded Legendary or Unique gear is essential. Forgotten Souls allow you to enhance your gear to the highest possible level, making you more competitive in the most challenging content Diablo 4 has to offer.
Conclusion
Forgotten Souls are one of the most important crafting materials in Diablo 4, serving as the key to optimizing your gear and progressing through the game’s toughest content. They can be farmed through a variety of methods, including salvaging cheap Diablo 4 Items, completing Nightmare Dungeons, and participating in World Events or boss fights. Once collected, Forgotten Souls can be used to re-roll affixes, upgrade gear, and craft powerful items, ensuring you stay on top of the competition.
By following the strategies outlined in this guide, you’ll be able to farm Forgotten Souls efficiently and make the most out of this vital resource as you progress through the endgame of Diablo 4. Happy hunting!